Mapped: Every City With Over 1 Million People
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Key Takeaways
- Cities were defined by their official administrative boundaries, meaning populations refer to the city proper rather than the broader metro area.
- China has the most cities with over 1 million population, at approximately 130.
The world is becoming increasingly urbanized, with more people living in cities than ever before.
This visualization shows all of the world’s cities with over one million population, categorized by country. Using city proper definitions, the data highlights dense population centers rather than sprawling metro areas.
Animated Chart: Every City With Over 1 Million People
This graphic is also animated! Watch the video to see all of the world’s cities with over 1 million population plotted on a globe.
Data & Discussion
The data for this visualization was accessed from a Wikipedia page that lists cities with over one million population based on official administrative boundaries.
Due to differing national definitions and structures, comparisons may not reflect consistent geographic or urban extents. Population figures are based on the most recent data available for each city, ranging from 2010 to 2025, with most figures from 2020 or later.
| City | Country | Population | Data as of |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shanghai |  China |
21,909,814 | 2020 |
| Delhi |  India |
20,591,874 | 2021 |
| Karachi |  Pakistan |
20,382,881 | 2023 |
| Beijing | China |
18,960,744 | 2020 |
| Shenzhen | China |
17,444,609 | 2020 |
| Guangzhou | China |
16,096,724 | 2020 |
| Lagos |  Nigeria |
15,946,000 | 2023 |
| Istanbul |  Turkey |
15,701,602 | 2024 |
| Kinshasa |  DR Congo |
14,565,700 | 2020 |
| Bangalore | India |
14,254,786 | 2021 |
| Tokyo |  Japan |
14,178,000 | 2024 |
| Chengdu | China |
13,568,357 | 2020 |
| Moscow |  Russia |
13,149,803 | 2024 |
| Mumbai | India |
13,127,825 | 2021 |
| Lahore | Pakistan |
13,004,135 | 2023 |
| São Paulo |  Brazil |
11,895,578 | 2024 |
| Tianjin | China |
11,052,404 | 2020 |
| Jakarta |  Indonesia |
10,562,088 | 2020 |
| Wuhan | China |
10,494,879 | 2020 |
| Dhaka |  Bangladesh |
10,278,882 | 2022 |
| Hyderabad | India |
10,269,000 | 2021 |
| Lima |  Peru |
10,004,141 | 2022 |
| Cairo |  Egypt |
9,801,536 | 2023 |
| Chennai | India |
9,722,974 | 2021 |
| Dongguan | China |
9,644,871 | 2020 |
| Seoul |  South Korea |
9,586,195 | 2020 |
| Chongqing | China |
9,580,810 | 2020 |
| Xi’an | China |
9,392,938 | 2020 |
| Hangzhou | China |
9,236,032 | 2020 |
| Mexico City |  Mexico |
9,209,944 | 2020 |
| Luanda |  Angola |
9,079,800 | 2022 |
| Foshan | China |
9,042,509 | 2020 |
| Tehran |  Iran |
9,039,000 | 2021 |
| London |  United Kingdom |
8,866,180 | 2022 |
| Bangkok |  Thailand |
8,833,400 | 2019 |
| New York City |  United States |
8,478,072 | 2024 |
| Ahmedabad | India |
8,253,226 | 2021 |
| Bogotá |  Colombia |
7,732,161 | 2020 |
| Surat | India |
7,567,538 | 2021 |
| Nanjing | China |
7,519,814 | 2020 |
| Hong Kong | China |
7,498,100 | 2023 |
| Shenyang | China |
7,026,358 | 2020 |
| Ho Chi Minh City |  Vietnam |
7,004,921 | 2019 |
| Riyadh |  Saudi Arabia |
6,924,566 | 2022 |
| Rio de Janeiro | Brazil |
6,729,894 | 2022 |
| Baghdad |  Iraq |
6,719,476 | 2018 |
| Zhengzhou | China |
6,461,013 | 2020 |
| Qingdao | China |
6,165,279 | 2020 |
| Kolkata | India |
6,112,874 | 2020 |
| Singapore |  Singapore |
6,040,000 | 2024 |
| Suzhou | China |
5,892,892 | 2020 |
| Changsha | China |
5,630,256 | 2020 |
| Abidjan |  Côte d’Ivoire |
5,616,633 | 2021 |
| Saint Petersburg | Russia |
5,597,763 | 2024 |
| Jinan | China |
5,452,335 | 2020 |
| Dar es Salaam |  Tanzania |
5,383,728 | 2022 |
| Alexandria | Egypt |
5,362,517 | 2023 |
| Kunming | China |
5,273,144 | 2020 |
| Harbin | China |
5,242,897 | 2020 |
| Sydney |  Australia |
5,231,147 | 2021 |
| Santiago |  Chile |
5,220,161 | 2017 |
| Ankara | Turkey |
5,186,002 | 2022 |
| Shijiazhuang | China |
5,090,440 | 2020 |
| Hefei | China |
5,055,978 | 2020 |
| Melbourne | Australia |
5,031,195 | 2022 |
| Dalian | China |
4,913,879 | 2020 |
| Johannesburg |  South Africa |
4,803,262 | 2022 |
| Cape Town | South Africa |
4,772,846 | 2022 |
| Nairobi |  Kenya |
4,750,100 | 2023 |
| Yangon |  Myanmar |
4,728,524 | 2014 |
| Kano | Nigeria |
4,648,400 | 2022 |
| Xiamen | China |
4,617,251 | 2020 |
| Nanning | China |
4,582,703 | 2020 |
| Changchun | China |
4,557,356 | 2020 |
| Giza | Egypt |
4,458,135 | 2023 |
| Kabul |  Afghanistan |
4,434,600 | 2020 |
| Taiyuan | China |
4,303,673 | 2020 |
| eThekwini (Durban) | South Africa |
4,239,901 | 2022 |
| Bamako |  Mali |
4,227,569 | 2022 |
| Jaipur | India |
4,067,826 | 2021 |
| Ekurhuleni | South Africa |
4,066,691 | |
| Tshwane (Pretoria) | South Africa |
4,040,315 | |
| New Taipei City |  Taiwan |
4,030,954 | |
| Guiyang | China |
4,021,275 | |
| Wuxi | China |
3,956,985 | |
| Pune | India |
3,891,823 | |
| Shantou | China |
3,890,169 | |
| Los Angeles | United States |
3,878,704 | |
| Ibadan | Nigeria |
3,875,000 | |
| Ürümqi | China |
3,864,136 | |
| Zhongshan | China |
3,841,873 | |
| Abuja | Nigeria |
3,840,000 | |
| Lucknow | India |
3,790,274 | |
| Berlin |  Germany |
3,782,202 | |
| Yokohama | Japan |
3,777,491 | |
| Ningbo | China |
3,731,203 | |
| Fuzhou | China |
3,723,454 | |
| Jeddah | Saudi Arabia |
3,712,917 | |
| Faisalabad | Pakistan |
3,691,999 | |
| Casablanca |  Morocco |
3,640,000 | |
| Hanoi | Vietnam |
3,605,364 | |
| Dubai |  United Arab Emirates |
3,570,099 | |
| Nanchang | China |
3,518,975 | |
| Addis Ababa |  Ethiopia |
3,480,229 | |
| Port Harcourt | Nigeria |
3,480,000 | |
| Madrid |  Spain |
3,416,771 | |
| Busan | South Korea |
3,349,016 | |
| Chittagong | Bangladesh |
3,227,246 | |
| Kanpur | India |
3,203,932 | |
| Changzhou | China |
3,187,315 | |
| Pyongyang |  North Korea |
3,133,000 | |
| Buenos Aires |  Argentina |
3,120,612 | |
| Lanzhou | China |
3,012,577 | |
| Mashhad | Iran |
3,001,184 | |
| Nantong | China |
2,987,600 | |
| Brasília | Brazil |
2,982,818 | |
| Surabaya | Indonesia |
2,972,801 | |
| Quezon City |  Philippines |
2,960,048 | |
| Tashkent |  Uzbekistan |
2,956,384 | |
| Kyiv |  Ukraine |
2,952,301 | |
| İzmir | Turkey |
2,948,160 | |
| Incheon | South Korea |
2,945,454 | |
| Nagpur | India |
2,940,000 | |
| Kumasi |  Ghana |
2,907,000 | |
| Algiers |  Algeria |
2,902,000 | |
| Mbuji-Mayi | DR Congo |
2,892,000 | |
| Xuzhou | China |
2,845,552 | |
| Taichung | Taiwan |
2,820,787 | |
| Lubumbashi | DR Congo |
2,812,000 | |
| Toronto |  Canada |
2,794,356 | |
| Douala |  Cameroon |
2,768,400 | |
| Kaohsiung | Taiwan |
2,765,932 | |
| Yaoundé | Cameroon |
2,765,600 | |
| Osaka | Japan |
2,752,412 | |
| Zibo | China |
2,750,312 | |
| Rome |  Italy |
2,748,109 | |
| Linyi | China |
2,743,843 | |
| Chicago | United States |
2,721,308 | |
| Gazipur | Bangladesh |
2,674,697 | |
| Guayaquil |  Ecuador |
2,665,392 | |
| Baku |  Azerbaijan |
2,616,948 | |
| Taipei | Taiwan |
2,602,418 | |
| Damascus |  Syria |
2,584,771 | |
| Wenzhou | China |
2,582,017 | |
| Brisbane | Australia |
2,568,927 | |
| Tangshan | China |
2,549,968 | |
| Sanaa |  Yemen |
2,545,000 | |
| Bandung | Indonesia |
2,527,854 | |
| Medellín | Colombia |
2,519,592 | |
| Gujranwala | Pakistan |
2,511,118 | |
| Ouagadougou |  Burkina Faso |
2,485,600 | |
| Bekasi | Indonesia |
2,468,448 | |
| Indore | India |
2,463,588 | |
| Medan | Indonesia |
2,435,252 | |
| Fortaleza | Brazil |
2,428,708 | |
| Salvador | Brazil |
2,417,678 | |
| Daegu | South Korea |
2,410,700 | |
| Omdurman |  Sudan |
2,395,159 | |
| Houston | United States |
2,390,125 | |
| Mecca | Saudi Arabia |
2,385,509 | |
| Hohhot | China |
2,373,399 | |
| Haikou | China |
2,349,239 | |
| Bhopal | India |
2,337,000 | |
| Shaoxing | China |
2,333,080 | |
| Nagoya | Japan |
2,332,176 | |
| Mogadishu |  Somalia |
2,330,700 | |
| Patna | India |
2,321,000 | |
| Belo Horizonte | Brazil |
2,315,560 | |
| Accra | Ghana |
2,291,352 | |
| Rawalpindi | Pakistan |
2,284,014 | |
| Phnom Penh |  Cambodia |
2,281,951 | |
| Manaus | Brazil |
2,279,686 | |
| Taoyuan | Taiwan |
2,268,807 | |
| Cali | Colombia |
2,264,427 | |
| Luoyang | China |
2,230,661 | |
| Lusaka |  Zambia |
2,212,301 | |
| Zhuhai | China |
2,207,090 | |
| Liuzhou | China |
2,204,841 | |
| Aleppo | Syria |
2,203,025 | |
| Perth | Australia |
2,192,229 | |
| Lomé |  Togo |
2,188,376 | |
| Agra | India |
2,185,000 | |
| Multan | Pakistan |
2,169,915 | |
| Almaty |  Kazakhstan |
2,161,797 | |
| Brazzaville |  Republic of the Congo |
2,145,783 | |
| Havana |  Cuba |
2,137,847 | |
| Baotou | China |
2,104,114 | |
| Paris |  France |
2,102,650 | |
| Handan | China |
2,095,134 | |
| Huizhou | China |
2,090,578 | |
| Caracas |  Venezuela |
2,089,012 | |
| Bursa | Turkey |
2,051,464 | |
| Weifang | China |
2,044,028 | |
| Vienna |  Austria |
2,028,399 | |
| Minsk |  Belarus |
1,995,471 | |
| Kuala Lumpur |  Malaysia |
1,982,112 | |
| Khartoum | Sudan |
1,974,647 | |
| Sapporo | Japan |
1,973,395 | |
| Khartoum Bahri | Sudan |
1,968,601 | |
| Isfahan | Iran |
1,961,260 | |
| Faridabad | India |
1,957,869 | |
| Benin City | Nigeria |
1,953,000 | |
| Baoding | China |
1,940,384 | |
| Santa Cruz de la Sierra |
 Bolivia |
1,903,398 | |
| Tangerang | Indonesia |
1,895,486 | |
| Depok | Indonesia |
1,893,321 | |
| Hamburg | Germany |
1,888,879 | |
| Tainan | Taiwan |
1,874,917 | |
| Warsaw |  Poland |
1,861,599 | |
| Manila | Philippines |
1,846,513 | |
| Thane | India |
1,841,448 | |
| Peshawar | Pakistan |
1,837,741 | |
| Amman |  Jordan |
1,812,059 | |
| Tijuana | Mexico |
1,810,645 | |
| Datong | China |
1,809,505 | |
| Huai’an | China |
1,804,611 | |
| Yantai | China |
1,802,700 | |
| Kampala |  Uganda |
1,797,722 | |
| Jiangmen | China |
1,795,459 | |
| Adana | Turkey |
1,779,463 | |
| Ganzhou | China |
1,778,132 | |
| Davao City | Philippines |
1,776,949 | |
| Quito | Ecuador |
1,776,364 | |
| Curitiba | Brazil |
1,773,718 | |
| Montreal | Canada |
1,762,949 | |
| Monrovia |  Liberia |
1,761,032 | |
| Maracaibo | Venezuela |
1,752,602 | |
| Abu Dhabi | United Arab Emirates |
1,750,000 | |
| Kigali |  Rwanda |
1,745,555 | |
| Visakhapatnam | India |
1,730,320 | |
| Pimpri-Chinchwad | India |
1,729,359 | |
| Bucharest |  Romania |
1,716,961 | |
| Semarang | Indonesia |
1,688,133 | |
| Xiangyang | China |
1,686,403 | |
| Belgrade |  Serbia |
1,685,563 | |
| Budapest |  Hungary |
1,682,426 | |
| Gaziantep | Turkey |
1,680,723 | |
| Xining | China |
1,677,177 | |
| Zunyi | China |
1,675,245 | |
| Phoenix | United States |
1,673,164 | |
| Palembang | Indonesia |
1,668,848 | |
| Vadodara | India |
1,666,703 | |
| Caloocan | Philippines |
1,661,584 | |
| Conakry |  Guinea |
1,660,973 | |
| Barcelona | Spain |
1,655,956 | |
| Kunshan | China |
1,652,159 | |
| Varanasi | India |
1,652,000 | |
| Beirut |  Lebanon |
1,650,000 | |
| Ecatepec de Morelos |
Mexico |
1,643,623 | |
| Ghaziabad | India |
1,636,068 | |
| Novosibirsk | Russia |
1,633,595 | |
| Auckland |  New Zealand |
1,628,900 | |
| Ludhiana | India |
1,613,878 | |
| Fukuoka | Japan |
1,612,392 | |
| Daqing | China |
1,604,027 | |
| Kisangani | DR Congo |
1,602,144 | |
| Wuhu | China |
1,598,165 | |
| Karaj | Iran |
1,592,492 | |
| León | Mexico |
1,579,803 | |
| Philadelphia | United States |
1,573,916 | |
| Shiraz | Iran |
1,565,572 | |
| Tabriz | Iran |
1,558,693 | |
| Yekaterinburg | Russia |
1,544,376 | |
| Navi Mumbai | India |
1,543,000 | |
| Puebla | Mexico |
1,542,232 | |
| Putian | China |
1,539,389 | |
| Ulaanbaatar |  Mongolia |
1,539,252 | |
| Kawasaki | Japan |
1,538,262 | |
| Kōbe | Japan |
1,525,152 | |
| Qinhuangdao | China |
1,520,199 | |
| Zhuzhou | China |
1,510,148 | |
| Jilin | China |
1,509,292 | |
| Munich | Germany |
1,505,254 | |
| Ciudad Juárez | Mexico |
1,501,551 | |
| Recife | Brazil |
1,494,586 | |
| Harare |  Zimbabwe |
1,491,740 | |
| Daejeon | South Korea |
1,488,435 | |
| Hyderabad | Pakistan |
1,487,098 | |
| Nashik | India |
1,486,973 | |
| Yiwu | China |
1,481,384 | |
| Anshan | China |
1,480,332 | |
| Gwangju | South Korea |
1,477,573 | |
| Quanzhou | China |
1,469,157 | |
| Kyōto | Japan |
1,463,723 | |
| Cixi | China |
1,457,510 | |
| San Antonio | United States |
1,451,853 | |
| Nouakchott |  Mauritania |
1,446,761 | |
| Goiânia | Brazil |
1,437,366 | |
| Makassar | Indonesia |
1,423,877 | |
| Kharkiv | Ukraine |
1,421,125 | |
| Pointe-Noire | Republic of the Congo |
1,420,612 | |
| Tai’an | China |
1,416,591 | |
| Medina | Saudi Arabia |
1,411,599 | |
| Nanyang | China |
1,407,616 | |
| San Diego | United States |
1,404,452 | |
| Porto Alegre | Brazil |
1,404,269 | |
| Quetta | Pakistan |
1,401,362 | |
| Zhanjiang | China |
1,400,709 | |
| Dammam | Saudi Arabia |
1,386,166 | |
| Guadalajara | Mexico |
1,385,621 | |
| Amritsar | India |
1,381,193 | |
| Chandigarh | India |
1,379,895 | |
| Konya | Turkey |
1,365,287 | |
| Mosul | Iraq |
1,361,819 | |
| Guilin | China |
1,361,244 | |
| Prague |  Czech Republic |
1,357,326 | |
| Astana | Kazakhstan |
1,354,507 | |
| South Tangerang | Indonesia |
1,354,350 | |
| Milan | Italy |
1,354,196 | |
| Yancheng | China |
1,353,475 | |
| Zaozhuang | China |
1,349,883 | |
| Taizhou | China |
1,348,327 | |
| Shangrao | China |
1,342,220 | |
| Basra | Iraq |
1,340,827 | |
| Jiangyin | China |
1,331,352 | |
| Tegucigalpa |  Honduras |
1,326,460 | |
| Dallas | United States |
1,326,087 | |
| Saitama | Japan |
1,324,025 | |
| Antalya | Turkey |
1,322,766 | |
| Antananarivo |  Madagascar |
1,321,269 | |
| Guwahati | India |
1,319,000 | |
| Córdoba | Argentina |
1,317,298 | |
| Adelaide | Australia |
1,313,927 | |
| Mombasa | Kenya |
1,311,860 | |
| Meerut | India |
1,309,023 | |
| Kazan | Russia |
1,308,660 | |
| Maoming | China |
1,307,802 | |
| Calgary | Canada |
1,306,784 | |
| Belém | Brazil |
1,303,403 | |
| Heze | China |
1,293,767 | |
| Guarulhos | Brazil |
1,291,771 | |
| Rajkot | India |
1,286,995 | |
| Onitsha | Nigeria |
1,285,000 | |
| Montevideo |  Uruguay |
1,284,699 | |
| Yichang | China |
1,284,305 | |
| Dakar |  Senegal |
1,278,469 | |
| Barranquilla | Colombia |
1,275,264 | |
| Sharjah | United Arab Emirates |
1,274,749 | |
| Sofia |  Bulgaria |
1,274,290 | |
| Xinxiang | China |
1,271,350 | |
| Zapopan | Mexico |
1,257,547 | |
| Nanchong | China |
1,254,455 | |
| Chaozhou | China |
1,254,007 | |
| Bukavu | DR Congo |
1,249,000 | |
| Kalyan-Dombivli | India |
1,246,381 | |
| Bareilly | India |
1,245,000 | |
| Jieyang | China |
1,242,906 | |
| Shubra El Kheima | Egypt |
1,240,289 | |
| Huainan | China |
1,238,488 | |
| Port-au-Prince |  Haiti |
1,234,742 | |
| Fès | Morocco |
1,233,000 | |
| Changshu | China |
1,230,599 | |
| Mysore | India |
1,229,000 | |
| Fushun | China |
1,228,890 | |
| Nizhny Novgorod | Russia |
1,226,076 | |
| Mandalay | Myanmar |
1,225,546 | |
| Guatemala City |  Guatemala |
1,221,739 | |
| Vasai-Virar | India |
1,221,233 | |
| Suwon | South Korea |
1,210,150 | |
| Qom | Iran |
1,201,158 | |
| Hiroshima | Japan |
1,200,754 | |
| Qingyuan | China |
1,197,581 | |
| Batam | Indonesia |
1,196,396 | |
| Kaifeng | China |
1,193,802 | |
| Srinagar | India |
1,192,792 | |
| Xianyang | China |
1,192,776 | |
| Fuyang | China |
1,191,810 | |
| Nelson Mandela Bay |
South Africa |
1,190,496 | |
| Edmonton | Canada |
1,190,457 | |
| Chelyabinsk | Russia |
1,189,525 | |
| Jiaxing | China |
1,188,321 | |
| Anyang | China |
1,187,772 | |
| Krasnoyarsk | Russia |
1,187,771 | |
| Doha |  Qatar |
1,186,023 | |
| Hengyang | China |
1,185,130 | |
| Tbilisi |  Georgia |
1,184,818 | |
| Ahvaz | Iran |
1,184,788 | |
| Shymkent | Kazakhstan |
1,184,113 | |
| Tripoli |  Libya |
1,176,000 | |
| Samara | Russia |
1,173,299 | |
| Jinjiang | China |
1,172,827 | |
| Aurangabad | India |
1,171,330 | |
| Kananga | DR Congo |
1,169,000 | |
| Bandar Lampung | Indonesia |
1,166,066 | |
| Lilongwe |  Malawi |
1,162,500 | |
| Dhanbad | India |
1,161,561 | |
| Naypyidaw | Myanmar |
1,160,242 | |
| Yinchuan | China |
1,159,457 | |
| Iribarren (Barquisimeto) |
Venezuela |
1,159,062 | |
| Kaduna | Nigeria |
1,158,000 | |
| Birmingham | United Kingdom |
1,157,603 | |
| Rizhao | China |
1,147,175 | |
| Ufa | Russia |
1,144,809 | |
| Monterrey | Mexico |
1,142,952 | |
| Rostov-on-Don | Russia |
1,142,162 | |
| Campinas | Brazil |
1,139,047 | |
| Dazhou | China |
1,135,817 | |
| Ulsan | South Korea |
1,135,423 | |
| Luzhou | China |
1,128,479 | |
| Omsk | Russia |
1,125,695 | |
| Yueyang | China |
1,125,448 | |
| Zhenjiang | China |
1,123,813 | |
| Bishkek |  Kyrgyzstan |
1,120,827 | |
| Touba | Senegal |
1,120,824 | |
| Prayagraj | India |
1,117,094 | |
| Islamabad | Pakistan |
1,108,872 | |
| Baoji | China |
1,107,702 | |
| Mwanza | Tanzania |
1,104,521 | |
| Yibin | China |
1,100,737 | |
| Changde | China |
1,100,719 | |
| Krasnodar | Russia |
1,099,344 | |
| Sendai | Japan |
1,096,704 | |
| Chifeng | China |
1,093,068 | |
| N’Djamena |  Chad |
1,092,000 | |
| Yerevan |  Armenia |
1,091,700 | |
| Diyarbakır | Turkey |
1,087,786 | |
| Tangier | Morocco |
1,087,000 | |
| Panama City |  Panama |
1,086,990 | |
| Cologne | Germany |
1,084,858 | |
| Huzhou | China |
1,083,953 | |
| Suqian | China |
1,081,559 | |
| Maputo |  Mozambique |
1,080,277 | |
| Wanzhou | China |
1,078,149 | |
| Bengbu | China |
1,077,704 | |
| Yangzhou | China |
1,077,531 | |
| Ranchi | India |
1,073,440 | |
| Nezahualcóyotl | Mexico |
1,072,676 | |
| Howrah | India |
1,072,161 | |
| Lu’an | China |
1,069,940 | |
| Ottawa | Canada |
1,068,821 | |
| Yongin | South Korea |
1,066,975 | |
| Coimbatore | India |
1,061,447 | |
| Managua |  Nicaragua |
1,061,054 | |
| Voronezh | Russia |
1,057,681 | |
| Zhangjiagang | China |
1,055,893 | |
| Jabalpur | India |
1,054,336 | |
| Gwalior | India |
1,053,505 | |
| Vijayawada | India |
1,048,240 | |
| Salé | Morocco |
1,048,000 | |
| Changzhi | China |
1,047,461 | |
| Pingdingshan | China |
1,045,966 | |
| Goyang | South Korea |
1,045,497 | |
| Bogor | Indonesia |
1,043,070 | |
| Jinhua | China |
1,040,948 | |
| Mersin | Turkey |
1,040,507 | |
| São Luís | Brazil |
1,037,775 | |
| Zhaoqing | China |
1,035,810 | |
| Asmara |  Eritrea |
1,035,000 | |
| Perm | Russia |
1,034,002 | |
| Jodhpur | India |
1,033,918 | |
| Matola | Mozambique |
1,032,197 | |
| Shangqiu | China |
1,031,123 | |
| Qiqihar | China |
1,029,522 | |
| Changwon | South Korea |
1,029,389 | |
| Santo Domingo Este |
 Dominican Republic |
1,029,117 | |
| Santo Domingo | Dominican Republic |
1,029,110 | |
| Cartagena | Colombia |
1,028,736 | |
| Volgograd | Russia |
1,028,036 | |
| Niamey |  Niger |
1,026,848 | |
| Jinzhou | China |
1,021,478 | |
| Tshikapa | DR Congo |
1,020,468 | |
| Liaocheng | China |
1,020,430 | |
| Madurai | India |
1,016,885 | |
| Xinyang | China |
1,014,843 | |
| Yuyao | China |
1,013,866 | |
| Rui’an | China |
1,012,731 | |
| Odesa | Ukraine |
1,010,537 | |
| Raipur | India |
1,010,087 | |
| Jacksonville | United States |
1,009,833 | |
| Vientiane |  Laos |
1,009,300 | |
| Fort Worth | United States |
1,008,106 | |
| Kota | India |
1,001,365 |
China Leads the World in Urban Centers
China tops the global list with roughly 130 cities surpassing the 1 million mark. Shanghai (21.9 million), Beijing (19 million), and Shenzhen (17.4 million) are among the largest, but many lesser-known cities like Foshan, Wuxi, and Xuzhou also contribute to China’s urban density.
This is a reflection of China’s sustained economic growth and urban construction over the past four decades.
India and Africa’s Rapid Urban Growth
India follows closely with dozens of cities above the 1 million threshold. Cities like Delhi, Bangalore, and Hyderabad are booming due to migration and economic opportunities.
Meanwhile, Africa is seeing rapid growth in cities like Lagos, Kinshasa, and Nairobi—driven by high birth rates and rural-to-urban migration.
Western Cities Are Outnumbered
Compared to Asia and Africa, North America and Europe have fewer high-density cities. The U.S. has 11 including New York City, Los Angeles, and Chicago.
This reflects different urban development patterns, where suburban sprawl dilutes core city populations.
Learn More on the Voronoi App 
If you enjoyed today’s post, check out Cities with the Largest Working-Age Populations on Voronoi, the new app from Visual Capitalist.
